If You Fail, Try Again
by Beaumren Trill
Summary: Sequel to Try As He Might, He Would Fail.    Third installment pending.


**Trill: **So, yup. Sequel to Try As He Might, He Would Fail. Weren't expecting that, huh? -looks at last IBGH update- Okay, maybe you were.

But! Seriously! If you haven't read my other story, this one will make no sense, go read it!

All are belonging to Hussie, ectectect, more OoC goodness ahead. Not beta'd. All those lovely things. Enjoy~

P.S. Have fun with Sollux's lisp. It was a bitch to type and try not to mess up (Which I'm sure I did). Just... replace the th's with s sounds if you're having trouble. xD

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><p>Sollux screamed as tears ran down his face. His glasses had long fallen off, and he didn't exactly care when he felt the red and blue lens crack under his foot, joining the rest of the mess in his house. Pictures that were one hung perfectly now lay in ruin, glass scattered and actual picture ripped or crumpled. Vases and decorations lay scattered and shattered over various rooms. The couch was over turned, and sheets from the bed had been shredded and spread aroiund like streamers to complete the mess. Not to mention the hole he put in the wall, which cause him to bust his knuckles and bleed from several small cuts.<p>

Finally, after his throat was raw, eyes puffy and tired, and headache throbbing painfully behind his eyes, he started to calm down. His breath came out in short, quick, and shaky pants. His whole body trembled, and he had dug his nails into his good hand, to the point of breaking skin on that hand as well.

His golden brown eyes widened as he suddenly realized what had just happened. He fumbled around the mess, looking for his phone. Hopefully he hadn't broken that either. After what seemed like hours- ten minutes in reality- he found it, sitting harmlessly on the counter. He opened the speed dial and called the only person he trusted at this point.

"T-Tavros. Can... Are you busy?"

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Tavros really wasn't expecting any calls so late at night, right when he was getting ready for bed, too. When he answered, though, and heard a familiar, but broken, voice at the other end of the line, he knew he wouldn't be sleeping soon.

Not much later, Tav was answering the door, and not liking what he was seeing. Sollux looked like he had been crying, both of his hands look busted, his clothes were ripped in some places, and he didn't even have his glasses on. He never left without his glasses; ever.

"Thorry to bother you tho late, Tav." Sollux said, voice cracking some as he shuffled his feet in the door way.

"I don't mind Sollux; you are my cousin. Family is family. Now, come on in and get comfy, I'm making tea." Tavros said as he rolled his wheelchair out of the way before heading back to the kitchen. Sollux stepped in, shutting and locking the door behind him.

Sollux excused himself to go to the bathroom and change to the spare PJs he kept in the guest room. He was really Tav's only visitor. Gamzee, Tavros's boyfriend, was out during the nights, but didn't use the guest bed, anyway, so it was always open; unofficially making it Sollux's room for when he stayed over. It was times like these he was glad he had a place to go. When he was changed, he went back to the living room to sit down until Tav wheeled in with a tray across his chair, and handed Sollux a cup of tea.

"Just the way you like it, two spoons of honey, stirred twice clockwise, and twice,uh, counterclockwise." Tav said softly. Sollux smiled and thanked his cousin as he took the cup and blew on the top before taking a small sip.

"Makara coming in tonight?" Sollux asked softly, trying to steer away from the questions he knew were building up in the younger male.

"He's playing a late gig at some bar called,uh, God Tier. He won't be,uh, in until morning. However, I'd like to, uhm, know why you came in so late."

Sollux flinched a little, but he knew he'd have to be honest. "Tho, you know how I thopped taking my medication?"

"Sollux, you didn't!"

Sollux flinched again, wishing he had his glasses to hide behind. Sadly, they lay crunched on his living room floor. He gave a small nod as Tavros looked at him expectantly.

"What do you think triggered the fit? I thought you, uh, told your doctor everything was stable in your life right now? Did you, uh, lie?"

Sollux looked up and shook his head franticlly. "No! I didn't lie! Everything wath good then! But...recently I've been theeing thomeone. But, he doethn't like me like that." Sollux muttered into his cup as he brought it to his lips.

"Sollux... You weren't, uh, fooling around, were you?"

"What if I thaid I wath?"

"I would, uh, ask if you got attached to this... fellow, you said?"

"Would it make a difference if I did?"

Tavros frowned and leaned forwards on his knees, giving Sollux his best hard stare. "Solux... if he doesn't like you back, you know better than to-"

"He liketh me, Tav! He jutht... hath thomeone he loveth, but doethn't love him back."

Tavros let out a small growl, which surprised Sollux. "Sol, this, uh, isn't good! You can't let yourself be, uh, used like some tool!" Tavros said as he put his cup of tea, which had been in his lap the whole time, on the table.

Sollux shook slightly, trying to hold back more tears. He knew it was all self inflicted, but he couldn't tell Dave no.

"Sollux, you're going to hurt yourself more, and wind up in the hospital, or worse! You'll go back to the mental place!" Sollux kept his eyes on his cup. He knew Tavros was both mad and worried. He had even dropped his stutter, which only happened under such conditions.

"And what about you? You're jutht ath bad-"

"Excuse me? This isn't about me, Sollux! You're the one have manic-depressive fits of rage!"

"And you let your girlfriend take your legth, then thill went back to her! Makara told me latht time that the had been over to vithit in the latht month!"

"What I do with Vriska isn't your business! What happened to me was an accident!"

"The fucking ran you over with your own motorcycle, Tavroth! And laughed about it! The's a fucking nutcathe!"

"And you aren't a nut job? Sollux, you go out of your way to hurt yourself! You come here when you want advice, but you never take it seriously! Why can't you just tell this fucking fling that he needs to get over himself, and say yes, or no! If he can't be what you need him to be, he doesn't deserve you!"

Sollux was taken back at Tavros's sharp words, but for once, they sunk in. Sollux set his tea on the table and stood up. "Thankth for the tea, Tav. But I need to go home and clean up thome."

Tav's face dropped and he reached out to grab Sollux's shirt; but, Sollux moved back some, a soft smile spreading over his lips, hiding the turmoil in his head.

"Sol, wait. I uh, I didn't mean..."

"Yeth, you did. You meant every word of it. I'm glad you learned to thpeak up for yourthelf. Makara really ith good for you, tho don't let him go, okay? He really doeth love you." Sollux said softly before grabbing his stuff and starting for the door.

Tavros looked down at his lap. He wasn't sorry. Sollux needed to hear it. Tavros always knew what the other needed to hear; it was just the matter of making him listen. "I know he does... Just... be careful, okay? My door is always open for you, Sollux."

Sollux swallowed, and nodded before taking his leave, different ideas swirling inside of his already pounding head.

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Dave was mildly surprised when he saw a familiar pair of red and blue glasses on the dance floor. He had just finished his time slot, and was packing up. He hadn't intended for a little romp tonight, but Sollux was a good lay, and Dave wasn't going to turn it down. He finished putting his stuff under lockdown backstage, and calmly walked out to meet his friend. He didn't hurry because it would be uncool to show that he was eager to see the other man, for sex or otherwise.

"Captor! Haven't seen you in a week or two! Couldn't resist the 'Call of the Cool', huh?" The smirk that had been on his lips previously died, though, when he saw the others expression. "Captor? What's up?"

He noted that the glasses looked a little newer than before, and that the red and blue lenses were reversed of what they had been. What happened to his old pair of shades? It was also noticed how Sollux had bandages around one hand, and how he seemed slightly skittish. "Sollux, you okay? What happened to your hand, man?" Dave asked. He went to reach for said hand, but Sollux jerked it away before mumbling an apology. "Never mind, it'th nothing, Dave. Thorry to bother you." Solluxx said before turning and making beeline for the exit. Dave quickly followed, and once they were outside, Dave took a hold of Sollux's unwrapped hand and stopped him from going further.

"Sollux, what's going on?"

Dave tugged Sollux's arm to make him turn some so he could actually look at his face; and was thoroughly pissed that Sollux still wouldn't meet his gaze…. Or glasses, as the case were. "Talk to me, man!"

Sollux yanked his arm back, but didn't attempt to run off. He turned and looked at Dave, a frown ghosting over the thin line his lips had been pressed to.

"Thrider, thop. Pleathe, jutht… thop. I can't do thith anymore. I can't pretend everthing ith okay."

Dave was slightly baffled, but then it clicked, and he growled slightly. "Look, if you were so against me liking someone else, then why did you even start this whole 'hooking up' shit between us?"

Sollux looked defeated, but only for a moment. "I thought it would be okay. I thought I wath thronger than thith."

"Apparently not, huh? If you had issues about me liking John, you should have said so, and we wouldn't even be having this conversation. You could be back in your own little fucking emo corner, and I could still be flipping records without a care in the world!" This was so not cool. Cool kids never lost their chill façade, and here Dave was, grinding his teeth, ready to yell at the other man. The scary thing was that Dave didn't even realize Sollux had such an effect on him until now. Sollux had learned just how to make Dave tick, without realizing it, and that in itself was a terrifying idea.

"Look, you don't know what it's like to have someone you want to give you heart and soul to, but they don't even know you exist outside of a small social box!"

It was sollux's turn to get angry. He let out a vicious growl from his throat that made Dave flinch back—covering it up by making it look as if he were readying for an attack.

"Don't tell me what I don't know, Thrider! I know more about that than you think! Fact ith, thith ith over, okay? Don't… don't wait up for me, anymore. I won't come." Sollux swore out as he turned and stormed off to his car.

"Fine! Be a fucking puss about it, you asswipe! Don't come crawling back, cause it isn't happening!" Dave yelled back at the retreating form of Sollux Captor. He felt his face was heated, flushed with anger, and his jaw hurt from the pressure it was under when he wasn't raising his voice. Dave kicked one of the parking curbs, and cursed under his breath at the sharp pain that spread through his leg. He shoved his hands in his pockets and started back for his own ride. He needed to go home and recollect his chill. His brother would have his ass if he knew Dave wasn't cool, even for two nano seconds.

Once home, he plopped down at his desk to check his messages.

Why he felt anger rise up in him again, when he saw Sollux had blocked him on PesterChum, was a mystery.

"Well fuck you, too, Captor. You just couldn't handle me." He said to no one in particular as he pushed away from his desk, ready to go to bed. He was ready… until the computer chimed, signaling a message from John. Dave paused, considering ignoring it until morning, but his want to talk to the other overcame his want for sleep, and he spent the rest of the night drowning his emotions out with picking on John until he fell asleep at the keyboard; just like he always did. He didn't need Sollux before, and he sure as hell didn't need him now.


End file.
